MARK GROULX, B.Comm., MBA

Mark is the President and founder of AIM Group Canada Ltd. With an extensive background in corporate and investment banking, Mark has led numerous successful transactions from origination through structuring, negotiation and closing in several industries during the past 20 years with A.I.M.

Before founding A.I.M. in 1990, Mark spent a year in the corporate finance department of a Toronto based, institutional investment dealer which focused on mid-sized publicly traded companies. Prior to 1989, Mark spent four years in London, England, where he was an investment banker at two sister firms, Orion Royal Bank and Libra Bank, both owned by Royal Bank of Canada. In these positions he marketed corporate finance products to U.S. corporations and European banks.

Prior to working in the U.K., Mark spent the first five years of his career as a corporate banker in Canada, with Bank of America and The First National Bank of Chicago. Mark graduated from the University of Toronto with a bachelors degree in Commerce & Finance and subsequently earned an MBA from INSEAD in Fontainebleau, France.

TIM WEICHEL, BA, MBA

Tim brings extensive senior level leadership experience in mid-market Merger and Acquisitions to AIM Group Canada. His 35 years of experience include having been President of Carlton Cards and President of Canadian chocolate icon Laura Secord.Tim also served as Vice President of Regional Operations and as Vice President of Business Development for Van Houtte Coffee Services Inc.

His role at Laura Secord was to prepare the business for divestiture, and to create and deliver management presentations to prospective financial and strategic purchasers of the business. He was successful in selling the business to a private equity firm at an enhanced multiple. At Van Houtte, he was involved in the sale of the business from its publicly traded status to a private equity firm, and subsequently from private equity back to a publicly traded firm. While at Van Houtte, Tim was also responsible for six tuck-in acquisitions, and two non-core business divestitures.

Tim holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Commerce and Finance from the University of Toronto, and a Master of Business Administration degree from York University, with Honours in Marketing and Entrepreneurial Studies.

ANDREA POPTSIS, HBA, MBA

Andrea has worked on numerous financing, restructuring and strategy projects both as an advisor and in-house. Since returning to Canada from the UK in 2002, she has consulted to growth-oriented companies in the media, entertainment, technology and manufacturing sectors. Her areas of expertise are finance, fundraising, corporate development and strategy.

Andrea has held a number of senior positions with leading corporations in Canada and the UK. As CFO of Pink Tartan/Tevrow+Chase, a growing high-end apparel manufacturer, she established a financial infrastructure, re-financed the company's debt position and prepared the company for an equity raise.

In England, she worked in strategy and corporate development at Virgin Management Limited, Richard Branson's holding company, and at SPARK, an early stage venture capital company. Previously, Andrea held several management positions in the product development and marketing groups at Bell Canada.

Andrea holds an HBA from Ivey Business School and an MBA from INSEAD in Fontainebleau, France.

SCOTT VECILE, CBV, MBA

Scott brings expertise in business valuation and financial modeling to AIM and has significant experience both as an entrepreneur himself and as a consultant helping other entrepreneurs optimize their business interests.

Scott has experience completing business valuations and the related analysis in a variety of industries for transactions including acquisitions, divestitures and management buyouts. Scott's corporate experience includes performing strategic asset reviews for a large REIT as well as building pro-forma financial models used to secure project financing of over $500M. Throughout his career, Scott's focus has been on analyzing business opportunities, developing strategic business plans and maximizing a firm's value to its owners at all stages of the business lifecycle.

Scott holds a Chartered Business Valuator (CBV) designation, which is the premier credential for business valuators in Canada. Scott has also earned his MBA from McMaster University with a specialization in Strategic Business Valuation in addition to a Bachelor of Commerce degree.

BRYDEN FERRATO, ANALYST, HBA

Bryden recently graduated from the Richard Ivey School of Business with an HBA degree.  He has prior work experience at two of Canada's largest financial institutions, The Royal Bank of Canada and the Toronto-Dominion Bank.  At the RBC, Bryden worked in Commercial Banking and helped analyze small to medium sized companies' borrowing capabilities.  At TD Securities, Bryden worked in Derivatives and Foreign Exchange Operations, focusing on Interest Rate Swap Contracts and Foreign Exchange Currency Swap Contracts.  Bryden has completed his Canadian Securities Course and has worked on projects relating to discounted cash flow analysis and valuation.  More specifically, he has successfully completed the Investment Banking Institute's Technical Finance and Modeling Work Shop.  Bryden is also enrolled in the CFA program and is registered to write his Level 1 exam in December.